Hungry for Another Opportunity in the Postseason

By: D. Scott Fritchen

Donned in a dapper lavender sports jacket and swigging his signature beverage, San Pellegrino, a smiling Kansas State head coach Pete Hughes brought good vibes to the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship selection show gathering in the Shamrock Zone on Monday.

At 11:22 a.m., the Wildcats had ample reason to smile as well. K-State players hooted and hollered, and fans at the gathering cheered, as "KANSAS STATE" splashed across the TV screen — revealing that the Wildcats would begin their postseason in the Austin Regional in Austin, Texas.

No. 3 seed K-State, 31-24, will face No. 2 seed UTSA, 44-13, on Friday at 6:00 p.m. at UFCU Disch-Falk Field in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.

"This is the next step," Hughes said. "We all came to play in the postseason. Now it's time to get hot."

This marks K-State's sixth NCAA Tournament appearance and its first back-to-back tournament berths since 2010-11. It is also the second tournament in the Hughes era.

Getting hot wasn't an issue last season, as the Wildcats toppled fifth-ranked Arkansas and zipped through the Fayetteville Regional to reach the program's first Super Regional in years. Though lightly regarded at the tournament outset, the Wildcats made plenty of noise and proved in Fayetteville that the stage wasn't too big.

Well, Hughes and his coaching staff are returning again, and this time with a largely rebuilt lineup, which makes these 2025 Wildcats perhaps the most unique team in school history.

"I point to our brand," Hughes said. "Our brand has changed where we can have sustained success with losing our entire starting lineup, our two rotation pitchers, and our best closer, and then a year later, here we go again.

"We're a national program and kids know that so we can have sustained success."

K-State got a jumpstart to its season during an early swing that included road games or neutral-site games against Coastal Carolina, North Carolina, Arkansas, Michigan, TCU and LSU. Hughes grinned at the scheduling move.

"Look at the number of top-8 national seeds that we played — North Carolina, Arkansas and Coastal Carolina right out of the gate," Hughes said. "It prepared us to be Big 12 tough. Selfishly, I scheduled that way to see what kind of competitors I had in our dugout. I had never gone to battle with those guys. What a better way to find out than to get them tested right out of the gate. I obviously liked what I saw.

"Our kids are up for a good fight."

K-State and UTSA will meet for the fifth time in history and are tied 2-2 since their first meeting in 2008. The two squads last met on March 18, 2009 — a 5-4 victory by K-State to capture the two-game series sweep.

The K-State/UTSA winner will play the winner between No. 2 national seed Texas, 42-12, and Houston Christian, 32-23, on Saturday.

"We have a resilient group," Hughes said. "They're annoyingly likable. When our guys play fast and free and play to win, we're as good as anybody in the country. They're really fun to watch because they play for each other."

Hughes gushed over the myriad of stories surrounding his group of players this season — a group that has come together to record 30-plus wins and deliver many memorable moments.

"We have some unique players," Hughes said. "Shintaro Inoue is from Japan and he's as solid of a college baseball player as you can get and he's super talented. Dee Kennedy will be going back to Texas, so Dee is familiar with the program and the stadium. Jimmy (James) Guyette has been a go-to guy out of the bullpen for us. Maximus Martin brings some versatility playing shortstop and centerfield.

"David Bishop is great leader at first base and one of our best defenders in that position. Keegan O'Connor virtually led the Big 12 in conference offensive numbers in every category and has had an amazing year. I just can't wait to see our kids compete in the postseason. That's what it's all about."

Immediately following the NCAA Baseball Championship selection show, K-State players rose from their chairs in the center of the room, and they filed out the doors to cheers and hearty applause from fans.

It might not be the last time K-State players hear K-State fans cheering for them this season, either.

K-State fans are famous for traveling, and thousands of K-State alumni reside in the state of Texas.

"The K-State fans will show up," Hughes said. "I'm telling you, there's no better fan following for my money than the K-State community. I was really happy we're put in the Austin Regional for that reason among many because our community will come out and support us and our staff and our kids appreciate that. Their support never goes underappreciated in our program."

K-State's next stop after the selection show? Practice. Hughes planned to practice his players for an hour or an hour and a half on Monday "to keep the guys moving around."

Meanwhile, the coffee would be flowing in the coaches' offices at Tointon Family Stadium in preparation for UTSA on Friday.

"A ton of film work," Hughes said. "Every college baseball game is on film. We'll do a deep dive on those guys right now and see what the best matchups are for our lineup and the best matchups for our pitching staff."

That'll sort itself out. At the moment, Hughes paused to reflect on the path of this campaign — to this point of the journey.

"I'm proud they've gone through some downswings and have come out the other side and grown from it," Hughes said. "I know they're really hungry and they're hungry to go to Omaha. We talk about it every day."

Ready or not, it's that time of year again.

For a second straight year, the Wildcats hope to have everyone talking.

Kansas State University Athletics

Players Mentioned

David Bishop

Shintaro Inoue

Dee Kennedy

Maximus Martin

Keegan O'Connor

Related Videos